


This Is The Tale Of Baseball

by HoneyBeeez



Category: Ookiku Furikabutte | Big Windup!
Genre: ((slight mention of possible animal abuse but nothing graphic)), Abe Likes Dogs, Dogs, Family Dynamics, I think Mihashi and Mizutani are both afraid of dogs so i went with that, Team Bonding, Team Dynamics, first names, this doesnt have any ships this is a first for me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-22
Updated: 2016-07-22
Packaged: 2018-07-26 02:35:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7556764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HoneyBeeez/pseuds/HoneyBeeez
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"He was walking back home from practice when he heard the tiniest whimper he ever heard. He stopped in his tracks, and looked slowly over his shoulder at the alleyway he just passed. <br/>There was another whimper, and he hung his head.<br/>He knew his fate. He knew he was a goner."</p>
<p>In which Abe takes on responsibility, his brother teams up with him to help, and the team becomes a family. All in the name of Baseball.</p>
            </blockquote>





	This Is The Tale Of Baseball

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone!   
> First, i know this is a little weird, but there's no ships! That's because I wanted this to be almost as close to the manga/anime as i possibly could!  
> Also, the narration might be a little weird, but what can you do? *shrugs*  
> Anyways, please read and i hope you enjoy it!!

Taka wonders, vaguely, _very, very vaguely_ , if this is the right thing to do.

He was walking back home from practice (because damn him for forgetting his bike), and had already branched away from Mihashi and Tajima, when he heard the tiniest whimper he ever heard. He stopped in his tracks, and looked slowly over his shoulder at the alleyway he just passed.

There was another whimper, and he hung his head.

He knew his fate. He knew he was a goner.

He walked to the nearest convenience store and bought a small bag of puppy food with the leftover yen he still had in his pocket. When he neared the alleyway again, he was relieved to hear the whimpering was still there.

He ripped open the bag, poured a handful of the food into his palm, and carefully walked into the dark of the alleyway.

“Hey… hey now, come on… I’m not going to hurt you…” he cooed in the nicest voice he could muster as he inched his way into the darkness. The whimpering became louder, clearer, and so Taka crouched down, and held his hand out in the general direction of the sound.

Not a second later, a puppy crawled on its belly towards him, shaking with fear but desperate for food. He held his hand lower as the puppy ate. It was surprisingly gentle for a stray; he thought it would snap at the food as if it was feral, but instead it was delicate enough to barely scrap its teeth against his palm as it ate.

When his palm was empty, the puppy looked up at him in the dark, not moving away but not coming any closer either. He sighed, before filling his palm up again with food and lowering it.

When the puppy was done eating, Taka wasted no time in picking it up and cradling it in his arms. The puppy resisted a little, wiggling and kicking, trying to get out of his grip, but Taka only pet its head and calmed it down.

It was a struggle, trying to find a hold, not only on the puppy, but on his bag, and the puppy food, too, but when he found something that worked, he wasted no time in going home.

He wonders if he should have called home before taking on the responsibility of a stray puppy. After all, it was almost like taboo to speak about pets in their house, so it would be sudden and weird. But Taka couldn’t leave the puppy all alone, not now, not when it looked perfectly happy to be with him.

He must have taken too long, because Shun was sitting on the porch as he approached his house.

“What are you sitting outside for?” Taka asks, loud enough for his little brother to hear him. Shun looks up quickly, eyes ready to defend, when he spots the puppy curled up against his brother’s chest.

“Oh, she’s so cute!” Shun exclaims, rocketing to his feet and reaching out to pet the puppy automatically. The puppy yips, and Taka isn’t sure if it’s from excitement or fear. So, instead, he takes a step back and levels Shun a glare.

“Shut up! Do you want Mom and Dad to hear?” he snaps, and Shun’s expression automatically falls. “Besides, I don’t know if it’s a boy or a girl,” he mutters afterwards, acknowledging the guilt he feels for yelling at his brother.

“Where did you find it?” Shun asks, crowding towards him and the puppy once more before Taka sighs. He carefully puts his things down while still juggling the puppy in his arms, before he sits down on the porch. Shun sits next to him in a flash, and he takes the puppy out of his brother’s arms and into his lap immediately.

“I found it in an alley, so I fed it a little and decided to take it with me,” Taka explains gently, watching the careful way the puppy eyes Shun and the way Shun pets it all over eagerly. Soon, the puppy warms up a little, and starts licking at Shun’s fingers, its tail wagging to and fro.

Suddenly, Shun flips the puppy so that its back rests on the divot between his thighs, and tickles at its tummy. Taka hisses at him to be careful, before Shun grins at him and lets the puppy up once again.

“She’s a girl!” Shun says triumphantly. “I was right! I told you so!” Taka rolls his eyes at his brother’s antics, before reaching over and scratching the puppy’s head, right in between her ears. “What should we name her?” Shun questions eagerly, his grin so wide Taka was sure he would crack his face in half.

“I don’t think we should,” Taka says carefully, already expecting the scandalized remark from his brother. He puts a heavy hand on Shun’s head, effectively shutting him up and stopping him from waking up half the neighborhood with his objections. “We don’t even know if Mom and Dad will let us keep her! We can’t name her and get attached!”

“Then why don’t we ask right now?” Shun says, gathering the puppy in his arms and standing up, already turning to go back inside.

“Are you insane?!” Taka replies, leaning back and catching Shun’s arm as he reaches for the doorknob. “If they find out that I already went and grabbed a random puppy off the street, they’ll kill me!”

“We can’t leave her outside all night by herself! She’d cry, and then Mom and Dad will know for sure!” Shun remarks, giving him the type of glare Taka would give when Tajima says something nonsensical.

“Well, what do you think we should do? Sleep outside with her?” Taka shoots back.

He should have seen Shun’s expression coming. He really should have.

“Something like that!”

So, in the end, they hide the puppy in the backyard with the help of some spare plywood, the side of the house, and the puppy food Taka bought. Then, they somehow convinced their parents that they were “going camping” outside for the night by telling them that they barely had time to together since Taka’s practice runs so late now. They tug out a tent, two sleeping bags, and an old lantern for the back corner of the rarely-opened closet, and set it up as quickly as they could. After checking on the puppy, the two of them run back inside, change into their pajamas, grab their pillows, brush their teeth, and yell a quick good night to their parents.

Taka’s just thankful he was able to grab a few spare newspapers and two empty bowls before they slipped out into their backyard.

They usher the puppy inside the tent, light the lantern, and set everything up as best they can in the cramped space. Sleeping bags and pillows are situated, with the space in between being lined with newspapers. Shun fills one bowl with puppy food, while Taka carefully fills the other with water from the garden hose.

Sitting comfortably, Taka and Shun watch the puppy as it wolfs down its food and laps at the water.

“She’s cute,” Shun coos, flopping down onto his stomach and wiggling his fingers out towards her. The puppy starts, skittering away from his fingers, before eyeing him warily and going back to eating.

“Stupid,” Taka mumbles. “She’s still really scared, you know? You have to be careful.”

“But I wanna keep her!” Shun whines, burying his face in the end of his sleeping bag. “We’ve never had a pet before! And if we train her super-duper well, then what’s the problem?”

“Tell that to Mom and Dad at breakfast tomorrow,” Taka snorts, rolling his eyes at his brother. He really is just a kid, but he knew their parents too. They love them and everything, but their dad doesn’t have the patience for pets and their mom detests the mess any pet would bring. The way they were denied childhood pets created their love for them, especially strays, which led to their current situation. He _could_ blame it all on them, but that would mean being grounded, or, _worse_ , getting the puppy taken away altogether.

“Tomorrow,” Shun echoes, lifting his head up dramatically. The puppy collapses into Taka’s lap, eyes sleepy and belly full, as Shun pops up, sitting on his knees and looking Taka with wide, fearful eyes. “What are we gonna do with her tomorrow? We gotta go to school!”

Taka’s stomach drops as he pets the puppy’s head gently. What _are_ they going to do? The both of them know they can’t leave her in the tent. Taka worries his bottom lip as he thinks, and Shun literally radiates fear, before Taka thinks of something that might just work.

He’s just glad he shoved his phone in his sweats’ pocket before leaving the house.

“Huh? Waddaya doing?” Shun asks, crawling over to sit next to him as he presses his phone to his ear. The puppy stirs, and Shun doesn’t hesitate to pet it until it’s calm once more.

“ _Hello?_ ”

“Yuuichirou? It’s Takaya.”

“Yuuichi-? Wait, Tajima-kun? _The Tajima-kun_?!”

“Shh!”

“ _Takaya? Wow, you’re actually calling me, that’s a first_ ,” he jokes, laughing boisterously at his own quip afterwards. “ _Anyways, this must be important, so what’s up?_ ”

“I have a favor to ask of you.”

“ _Oh? You? Asking me for help? Do tell._ ”

“I found this puppy in an alleyway on my way home, and I took it with me-”

“ _Awww, Takaya, how sweet. You really can be-_ ”

“Shut up. So, I don’t know if my parents would agree to us keeping her. And I was wondering if you could keep her at your house until we get the okay from our parents.”

“Please, please, please Tajima-kun! She’s really sweet and cute, and I’m sure she won’t be much trouble-!” Taka tries his best to move away from Shun with the puppy still in his lap.

“ _Hmm… well, I can see your problem_ ,” Tajima says thoughtfully on the other line. “ _I’m sure my folks won’t mind a puppy running around, so of course!_ ”

“Okay. I can bring her before practice starts, if that’s okay.”

“ _Wow, Takaya, who knew you were such a sap when it came to dogs?_ ”

“Oh, shut up. I’m not a sap.”

“ _Yes, you are! You’ll probably beg your parents to let you keep her lat-_ ”

“Thanks for your help, idiot. Good night!” Taka says, hanging up before Tajima can put any more of his two-cents in. “Well, we got that all taken care of,” he says bluntly, patting at the puppy’s head before looking at Shun.

“You’re really smart, Taka,” Shun says, grinning so wide that his eyes are squished closed by his cheeks. “You thought of that quickly!”

“It wasn’t that hard,” Taka says, pushing his brother away and making him fall back onto his sleeping bag. “Get to sleep. We have school tomorrow, remember?”

“You’re worse than mom,” Shun whines, pouting at him before conceding and slipping into his sleeping back. Taka thinks of moving, if only to flop back onto his pillow, but the threat of jostling the puppy in his lap and waking her up scares him shitless. “Taka?”

“Hmm?”

“What if they don’t let us keep her?” His brother brings up the question Taka didn’t want to think about, and he feels his heart drop somewhere past his stomach as he rolls the words around his head.

“We’ll have to figure that out by ourselves, then,” Taka says carefully. “I’m sure Tajima wouldn’t mind keeping her. At least then we would still be able to visit her.”

“And we could see Tajima-kun more,” Shun murmurs happily, shuffling deeper into his sleeping bag.

“Yeah, sure,” he agrees, mostly so that Shun can fall asleep faster.

Abe groans when he begins to hear Shun snore; he didn’t have a problem with the noise, it was that, well, he couldn’t figure out how to sleep, himself. The puppy was still in his lap, and any movement would jostle her, make her wake up and yip. He worries the inside of his cheek, placing his hands behind him so he can lean back comfortably, and thinks.

Just laying down like this, with his legs crossed, would be sort of uncomfortable. Falling asleep sitting up would make him sore. He decides just to stay up and suffer the consequences in the morning when the puppy wakes up with a small whimper and a yawn. She shakes off her sleepiness and tumbles her way out of Taka’s lap. He almost laughs when she flips over and rights herself as she skitters towards her water bowl.

She squats on the newspaper and does her business. Taka panics for a second, knowing he can’t leave her practically alone to go throw it out, but he simply takes the newspaper, rolls it up, and shoves it outside, tucked under a corner of the tent so it wouldn’t blow away. He replaces the newspaper, and looks up to find the puppy nosing at Shun’s sleeping face, sniffing and licking at his cheeks.

Taka thinks it’s cute before Shun tosses and turns in his sleep.

He lunges forward, and scoops the puppy up and away from his brother. He keeps a hold of her as he slips into his own sleeping bag, and settles her on his chest. She wiggles and licks at his chin, and he stifles a laugh as he fishes for his phone.

When he finds it, he sets an alarm that’s earlier than all his other ones, kisses the puppy’s nose, and falls asleep.

Taka wakes up to a wet spot on his stomach, his alarm blaring in his ears, and a puppy licking the shell of his ear.

Perfect.

He jerks up, wide awake, only to feel the wet spot shift on his skin. He groans in disgust, before ripping off his shirt and throwing it in the corner of the tent after getting a whiff of it. Dog pee. Gotta love it.

The puppy has her butt in the air, wiggling around excitedly now that Taka’s up, and barks twice, the sound high and sharp.

“Shh!” Taka says, making movements to try and calm it down, but she just prances around him happily and barks again. _If she keeps this up, Mom and Dad will know for sure!_ Quickly, Taka refills her food bowl and nudges Shun awake. He sits up groggily, pawing at his eyes and yawning loudly. He grumbles for a second, until he spots the puppy munching on her food happily.

“Good morning, puppy,” he says, his voice still of sleep, but Taka doesn’t have time.

“Good. You’re up. You watch the puppy, and make sure she doesn’t make any noise. I gotta go get ready,” Taka says hurriedly, slipping out of the tent as quick as he can without letting the puppy out. He lets himself into the house through the back door, and is instantly met with his dad right in front of him.

“Dad!” he shouts, nearly jumping out of his skin. “Good morning,” he follows right after, hoping not to be suspicious.

“Mornin’. How’d the two of you sleep?” his dad asks, hands on his hips and looking down at his son.

“Fine,” Taka responds curtly with a small nod.

“You’re up early,” his dad notes, and the observation has him reeling.

“Uh, y-yeah, well…” Taka flounders, hoping to catch onto inspiration for a lie, and when it finally hits him, he decides to run with it. “We’re starting some extra practice today, so we have to be there even earlier. Sorry for not telling the both of you last night,” he says, bowing as deeply as he can with his father right in front of him. “I have to go get ready…” he says, weaving his way around his dad and hopping the stairs two at a time to get to his room.

“You better be home in time for dinner!” his dad shouts after him.

Taka sighs and leans against his door when he gets into his room. He can’t really believe that worked, but then again his dad would believe it if it came down to baseball. He knows how much Taka loves the sport, and Taka knows that is dad is almost equally invested.

But, he can’t let himself relax, so he slips into his practice uniform, makes sure his regular uniform is in his bag, and squishes everything down so that the puppy could fit in there. He checks, then double-checks, if he has everything, before flying out of his room and running down the stairs.

“Taka! No running in the house!” his mom yells from the kitchen. “Where are you going so early?”

“Waking up Shun,” he says, walking into the kitchen and grabbing a piece of toast from the plate she’s already prepared.

“Oh, take another,” she says, pushing the plate towards him. “You missed dinner last night. Here, eat.”

“Thanks mom, but I got to get going,” he says, taking another slice just to placate here before rushing out the back door of the house. “Shun!”

“What? Don’t yell!” his brother whines, still in the tent. When Taka slips into the tent, he finds Shun laying down with his knees propped up, the puppy halfway on his chest and licking at his face. “She’s so cute,” he coos again, kissing her ear, like Taka missed the memo.

“I know, but I got to go meet Tajima before they find out,” Taka says. “Now say ‘goodbye’ and pass her over.”

“But it’s not goodbye, stupid,” Shun says, sitting up and picking up the puppy. “It’s a ‘see you later’, isn’t that right?” he asks in a baby voice, and the puppy licks his nose. “Right!”

“Yeah, yeah, okay,” Taka says, holding his hands out.

“You know, I think you’re just selfish and wanna keep her all to yourself!” Shun says, holding the puppy closer.

“What? Are you kidding me? I’m trying to keep her safe, you-”

“See?! You do just want to hog her!”

“You idiot! Just give me the-!” Taka exclaims as Shun effortlessly hands the puppy off to him, a shit-eating grin spreading across his face.

“I was just messing with you!” he says, before scampering out of the tent.

“You-!” Taka wants to yell at him more, chase him until he collapses, but with the puppy in his hands, he knows he can’t. “Hey sweetie,” he says lowly, rubbing at the top of her head. “I’m going to take you somewhere, okay? But you have to sit in here,” he says, gesturing to his bag before setting it on the ground.

He keeps a firm grasp on the puppy as he stuffs the bag of puppy food into the back corner of his bag. Then he places the puppy on top of everything, and pets her so she’s not scared of the new arrangement.

“There. See? Fun, right?” He says, zipping up his bag, not completely, but just enough so that her head is hidden and she can still get air. He gets out of the tent, goes around to the front of his house, grabs his bike (because there’s no way in _hell_ he’s going to forget that again, he doesn’t need any more stray puppies), and starts on his way to school.

The sun is barely starting to rise. Taka hates himself for waking up so _goddamn early_. But he guesses it’s a good thing, because it’s a struggle to balance the bag-turned-dog-carrier and his bike at the same time. He stops every couple houses to readjust and find something that works.

He ends up holding his bag like a purse as he pushes his bike down the street. It doesn’t make it better that the puppy found out how to wiggle and open up the zipper more so her head was sticking out with her tongue lolling, looking like the happiness dog in the whole world.

Yeah, this is fine.

“Ooooh! Nice dog, Takaya!” he hears, and he looks up, mortified, to see Izumi leaning on the fence next to the bike racks.

“Shut up,” he grumbles, parking his bike and locking it. He fishes the puppy out of his bag and holds it before he levels a glare at Izumi. “What are you doing here so early, anyways?”

“I called him!” Tajima says suddenly, popping out from the dugout and running towards the both of them. “I thought it was cute that you would take in a puppy, so I had to tell someone!”

“Or some people,” Izumi remarks, grinning.

“How-how many people did you tell?!” Taka asks, scandalized.

“Oh, just the team, lighten up!” Tajima chirps. “Now lemme see this lil’ girl!” he says, grabbing the puppy out of Taka’s careful hold and putting her to his chest. She struggles a bit, before he coos at her a little and starts petting her.

“H-hey! Be careful with her!”

“I know that. Don’t have such a stick up your ass,” he says bluntly, giving him a blankly-innocent look before turning away. “HEY REN-REN! COME LOOK AT TAKAYA’S CUTE PUPPY!”

“W-W-Waaaah?” Mihashi comes peeking out from the dugout as well, hands twisting in his practice jersey. “Y-Yuu-kun… don’t call me-! AH!” he shouts, giving his own version of a glare at Tajima before spotting the dog in his arms. He jumps back, and starts backing away slowly, terror written all over his face.

“C’mon! She’s so small! She won’t hurt you, I promise!” Tajima yells, going towards him. The puppy is yipping happily, and Mihashi is shaking. And Taka is very, very scared for the sake of the puppy.

“She’s cute, you know,” Izumi says, and when Taka turns towards him, there’s an easy grin on his face.

“Yeah, I know. Trust me, my brother was yammering about how cute she is all night,” he says, waving his hand.

“So did you really find her in an-?”

“Yuuichirou! Leave Ren alone! He’s scared!” Sakaeguchi yells, running out of the dugout to stop Tajima from forcing the puppy into Mihashi’s hands. Izumi and Taka give each other a look, before the two of them run in, too.

Tajima is holding the puppy out to Mihashi, who has his hands over his face and is practically cowering away from her. Taka takes the puppy out of Tajima’s hands, Sakaeguchi goes and tries his hardest to calm Mihashi down, and Izumi thumps Tajima over the back of his head.

“Ouch! What was that-?”

“And you tell Takaya not to bully Ren,” he says, giving him a look that conveys both anger and disappointment.

“I-I-It’s… It’s… fine…” Mihashi stutters out, breathing in deep like Sakaeguchi instructs him. “J-just…. _S-scared_ … dogs…”

“HEY! WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON OVER THERE?” someone yells, and they all look over to see Hanai walking in, levelling the five of them a glare despite the fact that they were halfway across the field.

“OI! Hanai! Come check out Takaya’s awesome puppy!” Tajima yells, cupping his hand around his mouth and beckoning the captain over with his other.

“What are you talking about?” he says, stomping over to their little group, and almost stops in his tracks when he sees the puppy curled up safely in Taka’s arms. “Well, shit. Why the hell do you have a dog?”

“I found her yesterday and I made the mistake of asking Yuuichirou to take care of her until I can get my parents to agree to keep her,” Taka says, almost mournfully, as he gives Tajima a glare.

“Hey! It’s not my fault!” Tajima says.

“You were shoving the puppy in Ren’s face…” Izumi and Sakaeguchi say together, their eyes squinted in an “ _I can’t believe you’re denying this right now_ ” look. The two of them look at each other afterwards and laugh. Mihashi holds in a little snort of laughter, too.

“Well, that was a dumb idea,” Hanai notes, his expression unimpressed as he looked at Taka.

“It was last minute, so I can’t really complain,” Taka said, shrugging and bending his head to kiss the puppy’s nose. Izumi and Tajima coos at him, while someone comes up and pats him on the back.

“I guess everyone really does have a soft side,” Mizutani says, his grin wide as Taka glares at him.

“Shut up, Rice.”

“T-That’s not very nice!” Mizutani shouts as he takes a couple steps back, terrified.

“And, of course it’s short-lived,” Oki says behind him, coming up and petting the puppy despite Taka’s pissed off glare. “She’s really cute. It was nice of you to take her in.”

“How many people did you tell?!” Taka yells, glaring at Tajima, who puts his hands up innocently.

“I told you! Only the team!”

“Hey! You didn’t tell _me_!”

“You’re the captain, you don’t count!”

“Of course I count, you dolt!”

“Both of you, knock it off,” Izumi says, not really invested into their spat, but they stop nonetheless. “Hey, shouldn’t we get the puppy to Yuuichirou’s before practice starts?”

“That’s why we’re all here, right?” Sakaeguchi asks.

“W-where’s… Shoji a-and… Shintarou?” Mihashi pipes up, still cowering behind Sakaeguchi and eyeing the puppy in Abe’s arms warily.

“Oh, Shoji and Shintarou are at my house already,” Tajima answers, his voice loud enough for all of them to hear. “They’re helping my mom puppy-proof the place.”

“Then we should get going, before Coach thinks we’re slacking,” Hanai says, his hands settled on his hips. All of them nod, and start on the short walk to Tajima’s house.

Suyama and Nishihiro are waiting for them at the front of the house, already in their practice uniforms. They have smiles on their faces, and they wave at the rest of the team as they come into view.

“We thought you guys were going to be late!” Suyama says, grinning as he runs the distance between them. He sees the puppy in Taka’s arms, and his eyes widen slightly. “Oh, she’s adorable.” He sounds like it’s the first time he’s ever seen a puppy before. “Can I hold her?” he asks, and Taka hands her over without protest.

“Hey! Why does Suyama get to hold her?!”

“Because he’s not an excitable idiot with questionable impulse control!”

“I’m _not_ an idiot!”

“What’s her name?” Nishihiro asks as he crowds next to Suyama and scratches the puppy behind her ears, effectively breaking the spat between Taka and Tajima.

“Ah, well… she doesn’t have a name. Not until I get my parents to agree…” Taka says, feeling a little weird admitting that to his team.

“That’s messed up,” Mizutani says. “She needs a name, or she’ll be confused forever!”

“Dogs actually learn really quickly, so I doubt she would be confused forever,” Nishihiro says.

“You know what I mean!”

“A-At least…. Nickname…” Mihashi pipes up, still hiding behind Sakaeguchi, his hands braced on his shoulders. Everyone blinks, not expecting the comment from Mihashi, of all people, but... he does have a point. Even Taka feels bad for refusing to give her a name, but it’s not his fault he doesn’t want to be heartbroken if he doesn’t get to keep her.

“How about we name her ‘Baseball’ until we think of something better to call her?” Oki suggests, and they all snort their laughter.

“A puppy named ‘Baseball?’”

“Do you know how weird that sounds?”

“Why would we name her baseball?!”

“Wait, it’s perfect!” Tajima exclaims, jumping up and down and smiling like he just won the lottery.

“Shut up, Yuuich-” Hanai begins to say, but the other just latches onto his arm and shakes it.

“Think about it! That way, Coach doesn’t know about her!”

“Why would Coach want to know about a puppy?” Taka asks, a little scared about where he was going with this.

“Because you guys are going to stop by every morning to say hi to her, right?” Tajima asks, like it was obvious. What remained of the laughter died off as they looked at each other questioningly.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Suayama asks slowly, hiking the puppy a little higher on his chest.

“Are your parents even okay with that?” Izumi says bluntly.

“It’s not like I’m asking them to make breakfast for all of us,” Tajima says back, giving a tiny glare. “And we all kind of care about her now, so she’s all of our responsibility.”

“Also, the more socialization she has, the better she’ll be,” Nishihiro says, smiling. “Takaya, you said she was a stray, right? We might still want to make sure she stays this friendly when she grows up. So, all of us together and being with her will help her with that.”

“Since when did you become the dog expert?” Hanai, Sakaeguchi, and Taka say, squinting at Nishihiro.

“It’s just common sense,” he retorts.

“We should drop her off and get going now, right?” Sakaeguchi says. “It’s almost time for practice.”

“Ah! Right!” Tajima says, rushing over and plucking the puppy out of Suyama’s hands. “Everyone come and say ‘see you later!’”

Surprisingly, they all crowd around to say their temporary farewells to the puppy. They mostly just pat her head or pet her for a second or two, but Taka presses a kiss to the spot in between her ears, and Mihashi skittishly touches her wagging tail before he backs away as quick as he can. After, Tajima carefully walks her inside, hands her off to his mother, and heads out with the rest of them to practice.

“Where were all of you?” Coach Momoe asks as they all come rushing in. “You were all supposed to be here by now!”

“Sorry, Coach! We were taking care of Baseball!” Tajima says, as they all line up in front of Momoe and bow.

“B-baseball?”

“So, it’s really ‘Baseball?’”

“Yes!”

“It’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard…” Taka mutters, wondering how his life has come to this.

“Shut up!”

They start meditation bickering about Baseball, until Hanai shouts that the timer is starting. They stand there and meditate for their five minutes with their hands clasped in someone else’s, their heads bent, and their eyes closed. When the five minutes are done, no one’s hands are cold.

“Let’s have a good practice today!” Hanai shouts after they open their eyes.

“For Baseball!” Suyama says jokingly.

“FOR BASEBALL!” They all shout back, before hopping to it and starting practice, Momoe staring at them in confusion as they do so.

“They… must really have a passion for baseball,” Shinooka says next to her, her eyes crinkled as she smiles.

And this is how Taka’s puppy gets dubbed ‘Baseball.’

* * *

It takes three hours, fifteen minutes and forty-seven seconds for Taka to work up the courage to talk to his parents about having pets. Most of that time is spent on his bed with Shun across from him, yammering about how they “really have nothing to lose, honestly!” and that all he has to do is “ask about it! It’s not like you’re asking permission to go all the way to America to buy a puppy, or something!”

And so, Shun pushes him off his own bed, out of his _own_ room, and down the stairs. It’s not like Taka is putting up too much resistance in the first place, because Shun is too tiny and weak to push him all by himself, but he does maneuver him so that they are both standing in front of their parents in the living room.

“Boys? Is everything okay?” their mother asks, looking a little bit concerned.

“Everything’s fine, Taka just has a question for you guys, oh no, look at the time I should go shower and go to bed, goodnight everyone!” Shun says at the speed of light, and dashes out of the room before Taka can even figure out what he said.

“Hey! Come back-!” he yells in vain, Shun already up the stairs and slamming the door to the bathroom.

“You wanted to ask something?” his dad asks, looking at him expectantly. Taka gulped, shifting on his feet, before telling himself he had nothing to fear.

“I want a dog.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

_Had_. He _had_ nothing to fear. Now Taka has _everything_ to fear.

“Well, I mean, its just that… we’re older now, and more responsible, so I was thinking…” Taka says, looking up and away from his parents. They were both looking at him like he was crazy, like he was asking for a million yen rather than a dog. “That we could get a dog.”

“Taka, where did this come from?” his mother asks, looking at him with a certain degree of concern in her eyes. “You haven’t asked about pets since you were little. Why now, all of a sudden?”

“I-I’ve always liked dogs, you guys know that,” Taka defends.

“Why do you want a dog anyways? You’re never going to be able to spend time with it,” his dad says bluntly.

“But-”

“Between school and practice, you’re never home. You say you’re responsible, and I have no doubt about that, but you can’t expect to take full responsibility of a dog that you’ll barely see.” His dad isn’t mad, isn’t irritated, just… logical, in every sense of the word. He has a point. The reality of it makes Taka flinch.

“That’s… that’s why Shun agreed to take care of it with me,” Taka says, trying even though he feels like he already lost. “He’s home longer than I am, and he can pick up the slack I leave when I’m not here.”

“And what about when you go to college? What then?”

“Then I’ll take her with me!”

“Take it with you when you’ll have even less time than to take care of a dog?”

“Enough!” his mom yells, stopping the fight from escalating further. Taka looks at the floor, his fists clenched at his sides. “Taka, I don’t know where this is coming from, but if you and Shun truly want this, your father and I will talk about it.”

“Huh? But they’re not going to be able to take care of thing! Or train it! It’ll be left to us, and-”

“I’ll do anything,” Taka says in a last ditch effort, bowing lowly towards both of his parents. “I’ll do anything in order for you to agree to let us have a dog.” He stands up straight before his dad tells him to stop groveling, and gives the two of them a look. “Good night,” he says with a curt nod, before going back upstairs.

“So, that didn’t go so well,” Shun notes as he walks back inside his room. Taka jerks for a second, not expecting him to be in his room again, but when he sees that his brother is sitting on his bed with a pout, he glares.

“You ditched me back there, you idiot!” Taka yells, not caring how loud he is as he lunges toward Shun. Fortunately (unfortunately, for Taka), Shun moved just in time, rolling away from his brother, but he rolled a little bit too far and fell off the edge of the bed instead. He rubbed at his head a little, before looking up at his brother.

“I wouldn’t be able to convince them of anything!” Shun argues back. “They listen to you more than me!”

“Yeah, right! They always take your side!”

“Yeah, when we’re fighting! But if it’s something serious, they act like I didn’t say anything at all! If I told them I wanted a puppy, they would have laughed at me for being a kid.”

“They yelled at me for asking! They said I wouldn’t have the time-!”

“At least it’s better than them telling you that you can’t do it!”

“That’s why you have to show them that you can do it! You can’t just sit around and let them tell you what you can and can’t do.”

“They’re our parents, that’s kind of their job.”

“That’s not what I meant,” Abe says, sighing before his shoulders slump. “I’m just saying, if they think you’re an irresponsible brat, then you have show them that you aren’t.”

“And I’m saying that if they think you’re some busy jerk with a stick up his butt, then you have to show them that you aren’t, too,” Shun says, getting up off the floor and sticking his hand out to Taka. “Truce? For now?”

“Right until we get Baseball,” Taka says, grabbing his brother’s hand and shaking it.

“’Baseball?’ That’s what you called her? ‘ _Baseball_?!’” Shun says, pulling his hand away like he was burned by the hilarity of the name. “That’s so stupid!” he shouts, before succumbing to laughter.

“Shut up!” Taka says, lunging and getting him in a headlock before he could run away. “It’s just a nickname until we find something else to call her!”

“That’s so… that’s so stupid, Taka! You really are a nerd!” Shun says, laughing so hard that he has to clutch at his belly and that the only thing that’s holding him up is his brother’s hold on him.

“SHUT UP!”

“Boys! You better knock it off and get to sleep RIGHT NOW!”

“Yes, mom…”

* * *

When Taka gets to Tajima’s house the next morning, Tajima leads him inside. After Taka says a quick hello to Tajima’s mom, they head into the living room, where Suyama and Oki are already sitting on the floor. They look over their shoulders and wave when they realize Taka showed up, but that doesn’t matter all that much because Baseball dashes out from between the two and bumps into Taka’s shins. She shakes it off and yips twice at him, before trying to hop up and make him pet her.

“She missed you! That’s so cute!” Oki says, smiling as Taka picks up Baseball and walks over to them. He sits down with his legs crossed, and puts Baseball in his lap.

“She’s also a really good puppy,” Tajima said, joining them on the floor. “I brought her in my room to sleep, since I thought she would whine a lot, but she actually did really good. And when I woke up in the morning, all her pee and poo was on the paper I set out!”

“Is that true?” Taka said, smiling down at Baseball. Her stubby tail wagged, and when he leaned to kiss her head, she plastered his face with licks. “Yuck!”

“That’s actually really impressive for a dog so young,” Suyama says, giving a strangely proud look at the puppy.

“Do you think she had an owner that trained her before abandoning her?” Oki asks before calling Baseball over. She hops out of Taka’s lap and hops her way over to Oki. He pets her once, twice, and then she rolls over onto her stomach. Suyama reaches over before Oki can and rubs her belly.

“If she did, that’d really suck,” Taka says, deflating a little and considering it. She was a really good puppy, maybe a little too good. She was older enough to be trained at least a little bit, too; she wasn’t a baby, but it was clear she wasn’t full grown yet. If someone wanted her, then didn’t anymore, wouldn’t that cause her more problems?

“But she has us now, and that’s all that matters!” Tajima said, leaning on his side and catching Taka’s shoulders under his arm. “She’s gonna be the best baseball dog in history!”

The rest of the team came trickling afterwards, filing into the living room and finding a spot to sit with Tajima’s help. Baseball greets each and every teen as they show up, bolting out of whoever’s lap she was in and yipping for attention. Mihashi and Mizutani nearly jump out of their skin when the puppy bounds over. Hanai has to scoop Baseball up in his arms and Sakaeguchi and Oki have to physically calm Mihashi down afterwards.

Baseball, being the smart pup that she is, doesn’t bound towards either of the two frightened boys as they take their seats. Instead, she plays with the others and gives the two little looks in between, her tongue lolling out of her mouth and her tail wagging. Taka thinks that he made the right choice of picking her up as he pats her head and praises her.

When they leave for practice, they have to file out the front door quickly and physically hold Baseball back as they shut the door behind them. Taka’s heart hurts for her, but practice and school come first. He does have to show he’s responsible enough to keep her, after all.

Coach and Shinooka are, once again, baffled as they file in altogether, setting everything up right on time and starting meditation without a single hitch.

Practice goes smooth, a little too smooth, because Momoe pulls Hanai, Oki, and Taka to the side after practice and give them stern looks.

“What’s going on? I want the truth,” she says, her fists settled on her hips and a hard look in her eyes.

“What do you mean?” Oki asks, before Hanai can stutter out a flimsy lie.

“Well, all of you have been acting a little weird, lately,” Shinooka pipes up, rocking on the soles of her feet a bit. “You all show up together for morning practice, and all of you just seem a little… too…”

“Overenthusiastic,” Momoe supplies. “Now, really, this shouldn’t call for any concern. But to have this happen so suddenly,” she pauses, the liquid steel in her eyes transforming into daggers that pierce the three of them, “I can’t help but suspect that something is definitely up.”

“Does it matter how sudden it is?” Taka asks, folding his arms over his chest in a way that’s hopefully not nervous. “We’re all getting along, there’s no issues, and we’re working hard while practicing. Is that really suspicious?”

“Yes, it is! All ten of you have been acting weird, and we can’t help but think there’s something going on-!”

“Please!” Hanai says, as he bows deeply at the waist, his hands clasped behind his back. Taka and Oki get the cue, and mimic him. Momoe and Shinooka look at the three of them with wide eyes. “There’s absolutely nothing going on. Please don’t worry about the well-being of this team; we’re taking care of it for you.” Hanai sounds so formal, speaking like this with his voice carefully controlled. But it seems to work, because there’s a moment of tense silence before Shinooka speaks.

“Uhm… stand up straight, please,” she says, and when they straighten, both coach and manager look flustered and confused at the same time.

“As long as you all don’t find yourselves in trouble, there shouldn’t be a problem. Got it?” Momoe says, and the three of them nod immediately. “Good, now get going.”

Hanai, Oki, and Taka wait until they are definitely out of hearing range until they make a sound. Oki breaks the silence, letting out a breath he didn’t know he was holding in and clutching at his chest.

“That was scary…” he breathes as they continue to trudge to their classes.

“Why do we have to keep Baseball a secret, anyways?” Hanai says. “It’s not like telling Coach is going to doom us all or something.”

“Doesn’t Coach have our parents’ contact information?” Taka asks. “If she knew, she might tell my parents that I already had a dog without their consent, and it would be even more trouble.”

“That’s a bit of a stretch, don’t you think?” Hanai asks, itching his head a little.

“Doesn’t matter if it’s a stretch, I don’t want to take my chances,” Taka answers.

“You sound like a super hero or something,” Oki says, laughing a little before he reaches his classroom. “I’ll see you guys later!” he says, waving as he ducks in.

“Did your parents really say no?” Hanai asks after a beat, looking at him with a hint of incredulity.

“For now,” Taka answers with a sigh. “My brother and I just have to show them that we’ll be able to take care of her, and then we’ll change their minds.”

“Good luck,” Hanai says, clapping his shoulder.

* * *

Shinooka confronts them at lunch, where the two of them pushed desks together to eat. They look up at her curiously, and she smiles at them.

“You know, whatever’s going on, you can tell me, right?” she says. “I won’t tell a soul!”

“Sorry, Shinooka,” Taka says, trying to sound like he regrets his answer. He’s never been a good actor.

“That information is strictly confidential,” Hanai says with a small grin, not even _acting_ apologetic.

“You sound just like Tajima-kun!”

“No I don’t!”

* * *

It’s been a week, and all Taka really wants to do is sleep, but visiting Baseball at Tajima’s house with Shun in tow brightens him up.

They’ve been working tirelessly around the house for the past week. Their bedrooms were spotless, the floors shined constantly, the windows were cleaned, the bathroom didn’t have a speck of grime. Every time there were dishes in the sink, they raced to finish, dry, and put them away. They both incessantly asked their parents if there was anything they could do, and, before they went to sleep, they huddled up in Taka’s room and brainstormed on what to do better.

There wasn’t a word about their odd behavior from their parents’ mouths through it all.

Sunday morning, though, Shun woke Taka up early, made sure the house was clean, and left for Tajima’s house. Taka didn’t understand how Shun could have such a spring in his step so early in the morning, but when he realized that it was the first time he’s seeing Baseball in a week, he understood.

Tajima opened the door a couple seconds after they knocked, a smile on his face that spread from ear to ear. Shun practically had stars in his eyes the moment he lays eyes on the cleanup.

They’re led through the house to Tajima’s room, only stopping to greet Tajima’s mother and older sister. Tajima flings the door open, revealing a messy room with newspaper strewn across the floor, and Baseball with a stuffed animal in between her teeth.

Baseball yips and drops the toy before tripping over her own paws to get to Shun. The boy drops down onto his knees, and lets her hop all over him, licking his face, hands, and ears before turning her attention to Taka. She stands on her hind legs and paws at his jean-clad thighs, her tongue lolling out happily as she looks up at him.

They all shuffle inside and close the door after them. Tajima and Taka sit on the bed, while Shun is perfectly content with sitting on the floor with Baseball in his lap.

“So I heard Momoe and Shinooka want in on the Baseball secret,” Tajima says, leaning forward a little and resting his head in his hands.

“I don’t really blame them,” Taka says. When he thinks about it, he would be suspicious too. It’s not every day you just randomly find a whole team on the same page. Consistently. Walking into practice at the same time, making up different chants, being generally self-reliant when they usually didn’t or weren’t. It was strange. But it was good.

Everyone noticed that all of them were… closer. They worked together to get Mihashi and Mizutani as close to Baseball as they could, resulting in Mihashi patting her on her head and Mizutani actually letting her sit in his lap. Their laughs came a little bit easier, bursting into a full-thrown laugh fest when Baseball gets too excited and trips over her paws or when someone tells a lame joke or a cheesy pun. It feels… a lot more than friendly, which Taka picked up on even before Baseball. Now, it was a lot more like family.

“Well, they’re not gonna steal you away, huh?” Shun squeaks as he moves Baseball’s floppy ears back and forth. “Never ever, ever!”

“She’s not a baby, idiot. You don’t need to talk to her like that,” Taka says.

“Aww, does wittle baby Taka need a nap?” he asks, still in that stupid baby voice as he pouts up at him. Tajima breaks down in laughter so hard he snorts.

“Shut up!”

“Aw man, Takaya, your brother’s great,” Tajima gasps in between bursts of laughter. He leans on Taka’s shoulder heavily until he shrugs him off like he’s nothing.

“Don’t encourage him,” he mutters, eying Shun’s proud expression.

Baseball scuttles out of his lap and yips at the foot of the bed, obviously pleased about Tajima’s excitement. Taka leans down to pet her head as Tajima lets himself fall back and laugh all the harder.

They stayed for a couple more hours, early morning turning into scorching afternoon. They decided to take their leave when Tajima’s mother popped into the room, asking about what they wanted for lunch. Taka and Shun bowed deeply, thanked her for her hospitality, and left soon after that. They didn’t want to be burdens, after all. (Also, Taka knew how close everyone’s mothers had gotten lately, and all he needed was something reaching his mom about mooching off another family. Honestly, he was just happy that anything about Baseball hadn’t popped up already.)

Parting with Baseball was always sad, but it wasn’t forever.

“Taka, what if we don’t get her?” Shun asks on their way back home, gesticulating widely and looking a little panicked. “What if Mom and Dad say no after all our hard work? Then what? There’s no way Tajima-kun can take care of her forever, and she’s really cute and I don’t-”

“We’ll figure it out,” Taka says, putting a hand heavily on his brother’s head to stop him from freaking out. He looks up with wide eyes before shaking Taka’s hand off.

“You really think so?”

“No, we’re never having Baseball. She’s never going to live with us.”

“DON’T EVEN JOKE LIKE THAT! YOU’RE SO MEAN!!” Shun yells, throwing his fists out haphazardly, trying his best to hit Taka anywhere he could. Taka only steps out of his way and holds his hand out to press against Shun’s head, preventing him from getting any closer.

“Don’t try to fight in public, you’re embarrassing,” Taka says, before letting him go. He stumbles a couple steps forward, catching himself before he can fall flat on his face. “And we’ll get her, okay? Mom and Dad can’t say no if it’s the both of us.”

“But what if they pull that,” Shun switches his voice to as deep as it can go, puffing out his tiny chest and holding his head up high as he takes gigantic steps, “‘ _we are the parents and what we say is law_ ’ stuff?”

“Then we fight them,” Taka says, giving his little brother a wry smile.

“You really are stupid,” Shun says, shaking his head at him.

“Who said I was stupid, huh?!”

The two of them decided to talk to their parents tonight at dinner about Baseball. When they got home, they did all the chores they could think of doing before hiding away in Shun’s room to think of good points to bring up. After a decent-sized list was created, they took their showers and waited for dinner.

Dinner was always kind of a quiet affair. There wasn’t much conversation unless it was the night after a game, and the only things that broke the silence was the white noise of the TV and the clinking, scraping, and munching that came with every meal. Shun and Taka kept sharing sidelong glances, wondering when would be a good time to bring up the topic, but it’s like they could never agree on _when_.

“You two look like you killed someone, hid the body, and are wondering if you should tell us where you put ‘em,” their dad spits out, giving the both of them a look with a blunt expression on his face.

“Be nice to them,” their mom says, nudging his arm.

“So, who’s the unlucky fellow?” their dad goes on, ignoring the warning.

“We didn’t kill anyone, we swear!” Shun exclaims, looking like he was about to hop to his feet to defend himself. He obviously didn’t get the joke, or the metaphor or whatever, so Taka just rolls his eyes at him.

“We wanted to ask you something,” Taka says around a mouthful before swallowing.

“Well, ask,” their mom says gently, a smile playing on her lips.

“Well, I’m pretty sure you’ve noticed that we’ve been working really hard to show that we’re responsible enough, so-”

“Can we have a puppy? Pretty, pretty please?!” Shun yells, clasping his hands in front of his chest and bowing his head. Taka saw the way that his eyes were scrunched closed, and the way their parents shared a glance.

“I told you that was what they were up to,” their dad said, non-too-secretively

“But it’s not like they’re _not_ trying to prove it to us,” their mom argues.

“You’re too soft on them. Give them everything, and they’ll come out spoiled and entitled.”

“If we were spoiled and entitled, we wouldn’t have acted like your slaves for the past week,” Taka shot back, making Shun suck in a breath in shock. “You said I wouldn’t have time. I _made_ time. I can make time for a dog, too.”

“So you did all of this so you could prove me wrong, huh?”

“No, that’s not what he-”

“Maybe we should all just-”

“We didn’t do it to prove you wrong, we did it so we could have a dog!” Taka says, three seconds away from slamming his fist on the table. Shun puts a small hand on his shoulder, while their mom looks at them with pursed lips.

“That’s enough,” she says, her voice tense. “We’ll think about it.”

“You said that last time,” Shun notes.

“We didn’t think the both of you were _serious_ ,” their dad says, “but apparently, you are.”

“We _will_ think about it this time,” their mom says, giving their dad a glare. “But for now, please keep up the good work and give us a reason to reward you.”

“Fine,” Taka says, nodding, before pushing the rest of his dinner away and leaving the table. He didn’t have much of his appetite left, anyways.

* * *

“Whoa, did you really talk back to your dad like that?” Izumi gaps as Taka tells the story.

“It’s not like anything I said wasn’t true,” Taka says, shrugging. “Anyways, long story short, they’re actually considering letting us keep her now.”

“T-T-That’s… good! A-At least…” Mihashi pipes up, looking away from where Baseball was tentatively placed in his lap. She wiggles, tilting her head up to that his hand is petting her again. Mihashi jumps at the contact, before letting out a breath and petting her nervously. “S-She’s… cute. Y-You should… keep her…”

“Not before you steal her away!” Tajima says from his spot on the couch. He was sitting upside down, his legs dangling off the top as his head lolls off the edge.

“W-What?! I-I wouldn’t… T-Takaya’s… dog, so…” he stutters, flustered, before Sakaeguchi sets a hand on his shoulder.

“He was just kidding, Ren,” Sakaeguchi assures, a kind smile on his face. Mihashi nods.

“You’ve actually gotten really good with her,” Taka notes, not sure what to say about it but wanting to bring it up. Little things like that matter to Mihashi, Tajima told him that much. “And you’re talking clearer.” He couldn’t help feeling a little happy about his progress, even though he had nothing to do with it.

“Mizutani’s gotten really good with her, too,” Nishihiro says, before clapping his hands and calling Baseball over. She pounces out of Mihashi lap and prances over to where Nishihiro was lying on the floor. She puts her paws on his chest and licks his face before he sits up.

“Don’t talk about me like I’m not here,” Mizutani pouts, crossing his arms over his chest. Oki gives him a little nudge and a thumbs up, basically telling him not to worry without words.

“Apparently, dogs can do wonders for people with social anxiety issues,” Suyama pipes up. “There’s something about a chemical both you and the dog give off while petting them that makes both parties calmer. It’s why most dogs are so affectionate.”

“Oh, great, another dog expert,” Taka deadpans, rolling his eyes.

“Actually,” Suyama says, chuckling, “I got it from that guy.” He jerks this thumb in Nishihiro’s direction, and they all look to see Baseball on her back in his lap, his hands playing with her front paws.

They all let out a collective “ooooooh” of understanding.

“So, probably a week more of Baseball staying here before she’s off to your place scot-free, huh?” Mizutani says, looking at Taka excitedly.

“I hope so,” Taka says, giving him a little glare. “And don’t make it sound so easy. I’ll bring her to practice every day just to scare the shit out of you.”

“Y-You wouldn’t actually do that…. Would you?” Mizutani asks, shrinking back just a little.

“Well, Momoe brings her dog around sometimes, so I’m sure one more dog wouldn’t hurt,” Hanai says, shrugging a little bit.

“And I’m sure Baseball’s good with other dogs too,” Oki says, calling her over. She makes her way, before sitting right in front of him and licking his outstretched, wiggling fingers.

They leave for practice shortly after, Baseball whimpering and scratching at the front door behind them. It always breaks Taka’s heart just a little, but knowing that his parents are taking them seriously now makes the sting hurt a little less.

Momoe, Shinooka, and Shiga are already there by the time they come in. They file into the dugout, drop their things, and move to start meditation.

“Before you start your mental exercises,” Shiga pipes up, as they all start slowly joining hands. They pause, and look curiously at their advisor. “Coach Momoe and I wanted to bring up your odd behavior as of late.”

“Oh god, they’re gonna ask about it again,” Oki mumbles next to Taka, who turns to look at his almost resigned expression.

“It’s nothing, really!” Hanai says.

“We’re just really excited about Baseball!” Tajima says, hopping up to sling his arm around Hanai’s shoulders. Taka rolls his eyes at how energetic he is.

“We still have some concerns,” Momoe says, giving them all a glare that turns their insides to jelly.

“You guys… have been really secretive lately,” Shinooka notes.

“We’re just bonding as a team-!”

“It’s not like we’re doing anything bad-!”

“What’s wrong with hanging out-?”

“Why does it matter-?”

There’s exclamations and questions everywhere, even though Taka has no clue why. Getting defensive like this wasn’t really necessary, mostly because Baseball was none of their businesses anyways (okay, thinking that made Taka cringe a little, because that sounded a lot meaner than it was supposed to be).

“Enough!” Momoe yells, effectively shutting them all up. “I know it’s not a bad thing that you all are spending more time together, but it’s affecting how you practice, play, and interact with each other. So that makes it our business.”

Well, there’s _that_. Taka never thought about how Baseball affected them _outside_ Tajima’s house. Sure, Baseball helped everyone stay calm and focus on a common interest, but spending time with her and everyone else… changed something. There’s wasn’t a lot of yelling, not anymore. Mihashi has gotten a lot better at articulating, so there really wasn’t anything to yell about anymore. And there was more joking around than normal.

“What if we just bring Baseball over?” Izumi says, crossing his arms over his chest.

“What?” Momoe, Shinooka, and Shiga all say slowly, tilting their heads slightly to the side in confusion.

“B-But… what about…” Mihashi says timidly, speaking quietly even though he’s talking to all of them. He doesn’t finish what he has to say, but they all get it anyways: “ _What if Takaya’s parents find out?_ ”

“Swear ‘em to secrecy! Strictly!” Tajima says, holding up a finger and grinning widely.

“Even if we wanted to, we couldn’t,” Nishihiro says levelly. “We don’t have-” Suyama puts a hand on his shoulder to stop him. They all got the gist anyways. They didn’t have anything, no collar, or leash, or those little trash bag things to pick up her mess.

“What are you talking about?” Momoe demands.

“Nothing!” they all reply, looking back at the three confronting them.

“Let’s start practice then,” Momoe says, sounding displeased.

Meditation doesn’t do anything to unravel the coil of unease that the end of that conversation settled in all their stomachs. Practice worked a lot better at that, each taking turns batting off Mihashi and making bets on how far they can hit his slow-fastball.

Surprisingly, Izumi wins, and gets the privilege of holding Baseball first.

* * *

When Taka finally gets home, he’s greeted by a familiar sight: Shun sitting on the porch waiting for him.

“What are you doing out?” Taka asks, giving him a confused look. Shun perks up when he speaks, and gets to his feet.

“Mom kicked me out and told me to wait for you,” Shun says, smiling a little bit.

“And you think that’s a good thing?” Taka asks, raising his eyebrow at him.

“Well, she didn’t look mad. Neither did Dad, so,” Shun says trailing off as he reaches for the front door.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if we were in trouble,” Taka says as they head inside. He makes sure to close the door and lock it, before heading up to his room to put his things away. Shun follows him up, and Taka thinks that he just doesn’t want to face their parents alone if they really _are_ upset.

“Hey,” Shun says, sitting on his bed as he’s sorting out what he needs washed, “you think you can help me with math tonight?”

“Shouldn’t you know how to do it already?” Taka asks, throwing his dirty practice jersey on his brother’s face. Shun sputters, tugging it off his face and throwing it back at Taka.

“Gross!” Shun exclaims, giving him a murderous glare. “And, no. The teacher gave it to us last minute, so I don’t know how to do anything.”

“Fine,” Taka says with a sigh, “if we’re not in trouble tonight, _then_ I will help you with your homework, deal?” Shun nods in agreement, eager, even though he wasn’t sure of the outcome of tonight, either.  

Tentatively, the brothers make their way back downstairs and into the kitchen, where their parents usually are at this time. Dad was always at the table, waiting, while Mom was always cooking something. This time, though, as they peek their heads over the edge of the doorway, both of their parents are standing behind the table with their hands behind their backs.

“There you two are,” Dad says, sounding gruff but oddly happy, “get over here? What’re you scared for?” Taka and Shun make their way into the kitchen, standing stiffly in front of their parents.

“I’m not getting help with my homework,” Shun mutters under his breath pitifully. Taka nudges his shoulder, shutting him up.

“Well, we took some things into consideration, and-” Mom says, sounding firm in her resolve. Taka and Shun knew it was coming, and their shoulders slumped in anticipation; they would never be able to keep Baseb-

“What are you two pouting about? We’re letting you get a dog!” Dad says, his voice booming in reproach. Taka and Shun wince initially, but as soon as his words sink in, their faces shift into wide smiles.

“ _Really_!?

“We get Baseball! We get Baseball! Taka!!!!” Shun yells, clinging to his sleeve and shaking his arm. When they two of them look back at their parents, Dad is holding a black dog leash and Mom is holding a bright red collar with a dog tag already on it. Taka reaches for it, and the tag doesn’t have a name, and only has a baseball embossed on the metal.

“It’s perfect,” Taka breathes, laughing a little. He hugs both of them in turn, smiling so hard his cheeks hurt. “Thank you, thank you,” he keeps mumbling, like if he says it enough it might be reality, which it _is_ , which he can’t believe at all.

When they calm down enough, they all sit down to eat. Shun melodramatically tells the story of how Taka found Baseball, took her in without them knowing, and hid her until now. Taka talked about why she was named Baseball in the first place, because their parents were giving him weird looks, how the whole team met up at Tajima’s house to socialize her, and told about how Coach thought they were up to something and scolded them.

It was kind of a shock that there was a puppy already in mind, but they all laughed at the stories anyways.

* * *

When Taka arrives at Tajima’s house the next morning, all he does when Tajima opens the door is hold up the dog collar.

“WHOA, NO WAY!” Tajima yells, grabbing it and looking at the tag. “Takaya, that’s amazing! They really said yes?!”

“Yeah,” he said, grinning and taking the collar back, before finally stepping into the house. When he gets into the living room, he calls Baseball over, and has her sit down. He fastens the collar around her neck as Nishihiro, Oki, and Sakaeguchi gush on about how nice she looks with the collar on and how amazing it was that Taka could keep her now.

When everyone else gets there, Taka clips the leash on, and Nishihiro suggests that they take turns holding the leash.

“That way, she’s used to multiple handlers, and learns to stay by them!” Nishihiro says happily.

Baseball actually does amazing on a leash, which brings Taka to accept that yes, she had an owner before and they ditched her. He scratched her ears lovingly, just thankful that he picked her up in the first place.

“Why don’t we bring her to practice with us?” Hanai says as he takes her leash, wrapping it twice around his knuckles and petting her. “See how she does outside and on the field?”

“S-She’ll be… B-Baseball… dog…” Mihashi quips, looking as smug as he can with a watery smile on his face. It takes a second for what he means to sink in, but pretty soon, they’re all laughing.

“DID REN JUST MAKE A PUN!?”

“NO WAY!”

“THAT’S HYSTERICAL!”

“M-MAKE IT STOP! I CAN’T BREATHE!”

Baseball yips along with the madness, and Tajima’s mom has to come in and tell them to calm down.

They leave soon after that, making their way to the field. Taka holds Baseball’s leash proudly as they go, and she stays right by his side.

“Ah… is that a puppy?” they hear Momoe ask rather loudly as they come walking in. Shinooka coos at Baseball.

“Coach!” Tajima yells, raising his hand and waving even though their all filing into the dugout. “This is Baseball! Can she stay for practice?!”

Baseball stays for practice. She stays perfectly still on third base as they meditate, she runs with them as they lap around the field, she waits in line along with them for batting practice, and she stays next to Momoe when they tell her to.

“Abe!” Momoe calls, beckoning him over after practice. She hands back Baseball’s leash as he comes close enough, and he takes it gratefully. “She’s yours, right?”

“Now, yeah,” he says, smiling down at the dog sitting at his feet.

“Did you train her?”

“We didn’t teach her anything. I found her on the street a little more than a week ago. She’s been staying at Tajima’s house since then,” Taka explains, and it’s totally worth seeing Momoe’s face of shock and amazement.

“You have a good dog. Take care of her. And she’s allowed back to practice whenever you want her to be,” Momoe says, nodding. Taka bows.

“Thank you, Coach!”

* * *

That night, Taka convinces his parents to let Baseball sleep in his room. She obediently curls up next to his chest when he’s just about to fall asleep, and he falls asleep with a dopey smile on his face.

**Author's Note:**

> THANKS GUYS!!!!!  
> I really love Abe with dogs, so i wanted to write something about it!  
> Please tell me what you think! Comments and criticisms are always appreciated!  
> I love you! Have a nice day/night/whatever!  
> -HB


End file.
